Chapter 5
Mother-in-law
VIVIAN
I made a choice when I regained consciousness in that hospital room. I'd let them think they'd won.
I'd spent three years being the perfect wife to Derek Morrison. The perfect granddaughter to Harold Lancaster. The perfect friend to Claire Chen. Being perfect and getting destroyed for it.
So I decided to be something else: invisible. I played the role of the confused amnesia patient flawlessly… while recording everything.
The small voice recorder hidden in my bra—I'd retrieved it from my old belongings. Who knew I'd need it someday—captured every conversation.
Every night, when Derek has snuck into Claire's room, I accessed his laptop with his passwords I'd memorized.
Grandfather made me start at the bottom of Lancaster Industries, working my way up through every department. I know how to be thorough.
In his laptop, I found so many files.
IVF records of Claire's harvested, stored and transferred eggs. Handwritten medical notes from our fertility doctor: "Payment received, will proceed with switch as discussed."
Every night, I fought back tears whenever I opened his laptop. The conspiracies and discoveries were just too much. Even the prenuptial agreement I'd read and signed it hastily on our wedding day suddenly had a clause I never noticed.
"In the event of marriage dissolution, should Party A (Vivian Lancaster-Morrison) fail to fulfill reproductive obligations as mutually agreed upon, Party A will be financially responsible for all IVF-related costs including but not limited to medical procedures, facility fees, and potential damages not to exceed $5,000,000."
I never agreed to be a surrogate, but if I'd signed this document, and they have medical records claiming I consented to Claire's eggs...
They've built a legal trap. If I try to leave, I'll owe them millions I don't have. My trust fund is controlled by Grandfather, and he's disowned me.
I'm stuck, and I can't even snap this as evidence or email it to someone. Derek has my phone.
Finally, hope shined on me.
“My mom just got back,” Derek announced. “You two have always been best buds.”
That was true. She'd always been kind to me, sympathetic about my struggles with Derek's other family members accepting me. And most importantly, she despised Claire.
Patricia would see through these lies and her son's dishonesty, and help me.
The next day, Patricia arrived. She hugged me carefully, mindful of my belly.
"Vivian, sweetheart. Derek told me about the amnesia. How are you feeling?"
"Confused," I admitted. "Can we talk privately? Scared new mother to experienced mother?”
Derek and Claire exchanged glances.
"Aww, my scared little daughter," Patricia gave me another hug. "Let's go to the garden."
We sat on the bench Derek had bought me for our first anniversary.
“Patricia, I need to tell you something,” I took a deep breath. "I've been lying."
"Lying?"
"About the amnesia. I remember everything." The words tumbled out in a rush. "Derek and Claire have been having an affair. They switched the eggs and they're planning to take my babies. I've been recording their secret conversations and I have evidence. I just need help getting out, getting to a lawyer, stopping them before-" my voice broke and tears began falling as I fell my head.
"Aww… you stupid girl," she cooed, patting my back.
My heart stopped. My head snapped up to Patricia's face had changed. Gone was the motherly warmth, the sympathy. What stared back at me now was something dangerous.
"Do you think any of this would be possible without me?"
“What?"
"Did you really think my son came up with something this sophisticated on his own? I orchestrated everything. The surrogate plan was my idea." Her voice dropped with contempt now.
“What…” The word cut on my broken breathe. It was too much to take in. "But you always adored me."
"I was acting, just like you've been acting." Patricia smiled cruelly. "The difference is, I'm better at it."
"But Why? Why would you guys do this to me?"
"Because everything about you irritated me. Your kindness felt like mockery. Your wealth felt like condescension. The way you 'helped' Derek's family, like we were your charity project. The way you made it so obvious you were the rich heiress marrying down." She stood. "You deserved this. You deserved to be used the way you used us."
"I never used Derek!"
"You used Derek as a rebellion against your grandfather. You used your wealth to make yourself feel superior. You used your position to make us feel small. Now we're using you to get what we deserve."
Patricia pulled out her phone. "Derek? Claire? Come to the garden. Vivian has something to tell you."
No. No no no.
"Please," I whispered. "Please don't-"
"Oh, and Vivian?" Patricia’s grin widened. "I'll take that recording device now.”
Chapter 6
Stripped and Locked Up
PATRICIA
I'd been waiting for this moment for months. The pure devastation on Vivian's face when she realized I was always disgusted by her and had betrayed her. It was almost worth the years of pretending to care about this spoiled princess.
Derek and Claire arrived within minutes.
"She's been faking the amnesia," I scoffed at Vivian. "She remembers everything, and miss smarty pants here has been recording us."
Derek's face darkened. "Where?"
Vivian clutched her belly protectively, backing away. "Don't touch me."
"The recorder, Vivian," I said calmly. "Hand it over."
"No."
My sweet daughter-in-law moved fast. She grabbed Vivian's dress pocket, yanking it hard enough to tear the fabric, but it was empty. Then Derek, panicking, pushed Claire aside and ripped off Vivian’s dress from the middle. She screamed, left in just her bra and pantie, and still no recorder.
He dragged her bra off, and right there on the grass was a small recorder.
"No!" Vivian bent to reach for it, and it was the most horrible sight ever.
Derek stepped on it first, grinding it under his heel until it cracked open. He pulled out the memory card and pocketed it. Then he pulled out a phone I guessed was Vivian's from his jacket.
"This too." He dropped it on the stones of the garden path and smashed it with a rock. Vivian sobbed as her phone shattered.
"Any other copies?" I asked pleasantly.
"You will pay for this," she threatened weakly. I scoffed. What can a powerless whore like her possibly do?
Derek grabbed her wrist, squeezing tightly. "Any. Other. Copies."
"No!" she yelped in pain.
He released her, and she stumbled back, crying while cradling her pregnant belly and covering her bare breasts.
"Look how ugly her body is. Thank goodness I saved my real daughter-in-law from this ugliness and preserved her beauty. Lock her in the nursery," I ordered. "We'll deal with her after the babies are born."
"You can't keep me prisoner!"
"Can't we?" Derek smiled. "You're mentally unstable. You attacked Claire, remember? You're a danger to yourself and the babies. We're keeping you safe."
"I'll tell my grandfather—"
"Your grandfather doesn't want you anymore," Derek interrupted. "No one does."
I watched Vivian's face crumble and felt satisfaction warm my chest. She'd spent three years making me feel inferior with her perfect manners and her perfect life, making Derek feel like he wasn't good enough, making us all feel like charity cases she'd graciously accepted into her world.
Now she knew how it felt to be nothing.
"Take her upstairs. Make sure the windows are locked."
Derek and Claire each took one of Vivian's arms. She fought with tears, but it was useless against their strong grips.
I followed, making sure the locks were secure. The nursery was on the second floor, with only one door, which I watched Derek lock from the outside.
"You can't do this," Vivian screamed and pounded against the door. "I'll stop you. My grandfather will kill you."
“Yeah, right.” We all laughed.
"Good luck," Claire said, still laughing hard. "No one will believe you, girl. You're the woman who cheated on her husband with her stepbrother. You're the disgraced CEO who lost everything. You're nothing, Vivian Absolutely nothing. Let that sink in, okay?”
I heard her drop to the floor, sobbing.
"What do we do now?" Claire asked as we headed downstairs.
"We wait," I answered. "A few more weeks until the babies come then we take them, divorce her, and destroy her completely. She signed enough documents in that prenuptial agreement to owe us millions if she tries to fight the adoption."
"What if she hurts herself?" Derek asked. "Or the babies?"
"She won't. She's too soft for that." I poured myself a glass of wine. "She'll accept her role eventually. She always does what she's told."
That evening, I brought dinner to the nursery. Vivian sat in the corner, arms wrapped around her belly, eyes red from crying.
"Eat," I set the tray down. "My babies need nutrition."
"They're not your babies," She said coldly, looking straight ahead.
"They're Claire and Derek's babies. You're just the oven. A very expensive oven, I must add. The IVF alone cost a hundred thousand, but worth it, since Claire gets to maintain her perfect body."
"When did you become so cruel?"
"I was always cruel, dear. You just mistook my poverty for kindness." I headed for the door. "Eat your dinner. Doctor's orders."
I locked her in and went back downstairs, where Derek and Claire were celebrating with champagne.
"To phase two," Derek toasted.
"To taking everything," Claire added.
I raised my glass. "To destroying Vivian Lancaster Morrison. Permanently."
And we drank.
Chapter 7
Keep Me Admitted
VIVIAN
They kept me locked in the nursery for three days.
Derek brought my meals three times a day, staying to watch me eat like I was livestock he was fattening. Claire came once daily to mock me, to tell me how she'd rearrange my life after the divorce. Patricia monitored everything from downstairs, ensuring I stayed compliant.
Sometimes Derek would enter and sit on the chair Claire had chosen, talking to me like nothing was wrong.
"You're doing so well," he'd say, watching me eat bland chicken and vegetables. "The babies are growing perfectly. You should be proud."
"They're not yours," I'd reply every time.
"They're mine and Claire's, but you helped create them. That counts as something." He'd smile. "When this is over, you'll see we did you a favor. You'd be a terrible mother anyway."
I should have thrown my food at him and attacked his stupid face. Instead, I stayed calm.
The nursery windows were sealed shut, but even if they weren't, it was still impossible for me to escape from there. Every furniture in the room was plastic, except for a wooden white-painted dresser.
After overhearing them say I'll be declared mentally incompetent if I refused to sign adoption papers, I knew I had to make the move I'd been scared to make for three days now.
They were going to lock me away in a mental institution forever.
I stood slowly, my eight-month-pregnant belly making movement difficult. I ran my hands over my stomach, feeling the twins move.
"I'm sorry," I whispered. "I'm so, so sorry, but this is the only way. Please be strong for mommy. Please survive this. Mommy loves you."
Carefully, I positioned myself. If I fell exactly right, I'd hit the corner with my side, not my stomach. The pain would be real, but the babies would be safe, I hoped.
"Please protect them," I prayed to whoever was listening. "Protect my babies."
Then I let myself fall. The corner caught me just below my ribs. Blinding pain exploded through my body, I screamed.
Even with all the pain, the impact wasn't enough as no blood came.
I had just a few more seconds before they marched in to know why I was screaming, so I smashed Claire's picture frame inside a drawer and dragged one shard down the underside of my butt before hiding away the shard.
The blood had already tickled to my inner thighs, but I smeared more blood on the inside and on my private part.
Just then, the door burst open.
"HELP!" I screamed. "SOMETHING'S WRONG! MY BABIES!"
"She's bleeding!" Claire gasped.
I lay on the floor, clutching my belly. "Hospital. Please. Fast."
Derek's face went pale. Because he cared about the babies, of course, not me.
The paramedics arrived within minutes. I was loaded onto a stretcher, rushed down the stairs, out of my prison.
Derek and Claire rode in the ambulance with me. Two security guards followed in Derek's car.
At the hospital, nurses rushed me into an examination room. Derek stayed in the hallway, making calls, Claire paced outside, while two guards stationed themselves at the door.
A young doctor entered. He was tall with dark hair and kind eyes.
"Mrs. Morrison," he flashed me a warm smile before checking the monitors. "I'm Dr. Adrian Cole. Let's see how your babies are doing."
He performed an ultrasound, his expression calm and professional the entire time. The babies were fine.
I heaved a sigh of relief.
"But I'm still bleeding…" I whispered. “Right?”
“The blood is from a cut on your butt. I'm sure you know that.”
“So I have to get admitted, right?”
He glanced at my cut, then met my eyes.
"Is there something you want to tell me," he reduced his voice, so only I could hear. He knew. He knew what I'd done.
"They'll come for me. Please keep me admitted."
"They? Who's they?"
I grabbed his wrist desperately. "Please. Please don't send me home. I'm in danger. They're keeping me prisoner. They switched my eggs during IVF. I'm carrying my husband's affair baby. Please, you have to believe me."
Dr. Cole stared at me for a long moment. Then he nodded slowly.
"I believe you.”
I was shocked at those words. What if he's like Patricia? What if he's secretly in cohort with them?
“I'll keep you admitted for observation. At least seventy-two hours. You can rest.”
My heart raced as he went to speak with Derek and Claire in the hallway. I watched through the small window as he explained something, his hands moving expressively. Derek's jaw tightened. Claire crossed her arms.
I backed up in fear when Dr. Cole returned.
"I've told them you need to be admitted for at least seventy-two hours. Possible placental abruption, which is serious. They can't refuse without looking suspicious."
What? He was really on my side? I exhaled softly.
"They won't leave me alone."
"Yeah, they've already posted guards outside your door. But… if you need to get out, I can help you escape.”
My thoughts went off for a second. I stared at his warm eyes and didn't know what to say next. My finger began tapping the side of the bed lightly.
Is this really happening?
"Why would you do that for me? I am just a stranger.”
Chapter 8
Escape Plan
Those warm eyes flickered with something I couldn't read.
"Because you are my patient, and you're clearly in danger. Rest now, okay? We'll figure out what to do. Also, you can call me Adrian."
After he left, I lay in the hospital bed, feeling the twins move inside me.
“You did it. You escaped. You're free!”
For now.
***
The hospital room became my sanctuary.
For three days, I rested in the narrow bed, monitored by machines that beeped reassuringly. My "injury" was healing and I was waiting for the right time to execute the escape plan that Adrian and I came up with.
Derek and Claire visited twice a day, playing concerned family members for the nurses. They only ever stayed long enough to remind me I wasn't free.
The security guards remained outside my door constantly, two men in suits who never spoke to me, never smiled, only watched me.
But they couldn't watch Dr. Cole.
"They'll take you back home tonight," he told me that afternoon. "This will work. Trust me.”
"I don't trust anyone." I blurted out.
"Smart." He pulled out his phone, showing me a map once again. I had just a thirty-second window to escape. “Goodluck.”
I waited and waited until finally, one guard left for his break.
Show time.
I reached under my pillow for the small sealed blood that Adrian had given me, and then I poured it between my legs so it stained my hospital gown and the white sheets. I pressed the call button and cried, “help! I'm bleeding again!”
Within seconds, the nurses—with Adrian—sprang into my room, looking all panicked. The second guard entered as well.
“Shit!” Adrian cursed.
“Why is she bleeding again?!” cried a nurse.
“Move,” Adrian pushed the guard away as they began pushing my bed. “Call her family. She needs to go into surgery now, if you want to save the babies.”
They pushed me frantically down the hallway, and just as the guard stepped away to make a call, Adrian stopped. I pushed the two nurses aside and began running to the emergency exit Adrian had shown me.
“Hey!” the stunned nurse called.
“Where are you going!?” called Adrian.
Thirty seconds was all I had as I ran without stopping. My belly made movement awkward, but terror made me fast.
I burst through the exit door, and the blue Honda was waiting like Adrian promised. I got in, started the car and drove off.
After driving for forty minutes, I stopped at a modest apartment building in a neighborhood I wasn't familiar with. I parked where he told me to park and went upstairs to his apartment number.
For the first time in weeks, I slept somewhat peacefully.
When I woke up, Adrian was back.
“I'm sorry about your bedsheet. I didn't have anything else to wear, and I'll replace it for you once I have access to my money.”
He smiled at me.
"Forget about the sheets. I am actually honored to have you in my humble apartment. I've been following your work for years, and I love your resilience. You should have seen the look on your husband's face when he learned you ran away,” he chuckled easily. But I didn't smile. There was still so much to do.
“Thank you for helping me.”
"Don't thank me yet. You’ve only escaped from them. You’re heavily pregnant with no means to leave the city right now. They'd be tearing down the entire state for you so, we still need a plan." He brought me water after that and sat across from me. "Tell me everything from the beginning."
So I did. From the housewarming party to the nursery turned prison. Adrian listened without interrupting, his expression growing darker.
“They are so horrible. You don't deserve any of this, Vivian.”
“I deserve it for being stupid.”
“No, you don't. You are not stupid,” he held my hand, but I pulled away from his soft touch. “This is reproductive coercion. You have a strong case, and you just need a lawyer, and DNA results.”
"DNA results?"
"To prove the babies aren't genetically yours. It's your evidence." He stood, pacing. "After you give birth, I'll order the tests immediately. Meanwhile, we gather everything else. Bank records showing payments to the clinic. Emails. Anything connecting Derek and Claire to the conspiracy."
"They destroyed my phone and recordings."
"Then we get new evidence. We make them confess again." Adrian's eyes met mine.
“I need to meet my grandfather first. His estate is in the Hamptons. He needs to know I was a victim of conspiracy.”
Adrian advised me not to, but I was adamant. Harold is a strict man, has been his entire life, and he doesn't tolerate injustice. Plus, he would be happy to see I've finally come to my senses regarding my marriage to Derek.
For over a week, I remained in Adrian's apartment. He brought me food, clothes, monitored the twins, and helped me plan my revenge. During the day, while he worked on his shift, I researched everything I could about reproductive law, surrogacy fraud, and criminal conspiracy.
That same week, I stood outside Harold Lancaster's mansion in a loose coat.
Chapter 9
Why So Crazy About CEO?
A driver Adrian had hired and paid in cash had brought me here.
"Miss Vivian?” The gate guard recognized me despite everything.
"I need to see my grandfather. It's urgent."
He let me through. The house staff stared as I wadded up the front steps. I barged into his study without knocking. Harold was reviewing documents as usual. He looked up with irritation, and as his eyes landed on the intruder, his face turned surprised.
"Vivian."
"Grandfather." I closed the door behind me. "We need to talk."
"I heard you escaped the hospital. Derek is looking everywhere for you. Why would you run away from your husband?"
"Derek is having an affair with Claire, Grandpa. They switched my eggs during IVF. These babies aren't mine genetically. They're using me as a surrogate and locked me in a nursery. They're planning to take the babies and have me committed to a mental institution." The words rushed out. "I need your help."
Harold set down his papers slowly. "Vivian…" he called my name softly. “Why are you so crazy about the CEO position?”
“What?” All the hope I had that my grandfather would be on my side since he never like Derek shattered. But I wasn't giving up yet. "I'm not lying! I have evidence. Or I will have evidence once the babies are born and we can do DNA tests."
"Why would Derek do this?"
"Because he married me for access to the company.” It hurt to admit this now. It hurt that my grandfather was right after all. “Because he's been with Claire for ten years. Because-" I stopped. "You don't believe me."
"I believe you're upset. Pregnancy hormones can-"
"Don't you dare." My voice shook with rage. "Don't you dare dismiss me like I'm hysterical. I know what happened. I know what they did."
"Listen to me, daughter. Derek will be an excellent CEO-"
“You are truly making him the CEO? You, Grandpa Harold, are handing your billion dollar company to a pauper you've despised since day one?” I scoffed. “What's he blackmailing you with?”
Harold's face went white. “What? I am a clean man.”
“Yeah, right. Derek's threatening your legacy, your reputation, so you betrayed your own granddaughter."
"Vivian-" Harold stood, his expression hardening. "You're being dramatic. Derek has been nothing but dedicated-"
"He's sleeping with Claire. He locked me in a room. He's stealing my children… and you only care about saving your fucking self!"
"Enough! Don't you dare raise your voice at me ever again. Go back to your husband, Vivian. Work out your marital problems.”
"I'm not going back." I stepped toward his desk. "I'm going to fight this. I'm going to expose all of them—Derek, Claire, Patricia. And if you stand with them instead of me, I'll expose you too. I'll tell everyone you are a serial killer, a sexual assaulter, a rapist, every damn thing on this earth. I'd rather destroy Lancaster industries than leave it for undeserving bastards."
"You would destroy your own family's legacy out of spite?"
"It's not spite. It's justice." I turned toward the door. "When I'm done, remember that you chose them over me."
“I'll make you the CFO.” I paused at this words. "You'll be an executive and you'll find a way to kick them out without destroying Lancaster industries or making grave accusations against me. Go back to Derek."
He pressed a button on his receiver and three seconds later, the door opened before I could reach it.
A grim looking man stepped in.
“Alex, take her to Derek.”
I looked back at my grandfather—the man who'd raised me, who I'd spent my life trying to impress, who was supposed to love me.
"You were supposed to protect me," I whispered. "And be on my side. Daddy would be ashamed of you."
"I am protecting you by encouraging you to accept reality. You married poorly. You made mistakes. But Derek is willing to forgive you if you cooperate. Take the executive position and don't do anything stupid."
Maybe he was right. Deep down in my heart, I knew I needed that position to destroy Derek. Making accusations against Harold would do nothing except validate claims that I was mentally unstable.
So, I let the man take me. He gripped me tightly, but I didn't resist. He shoved me into the backseat.
"Seatbelt," he ordered, his eyes watching me through the rearview mirror as he started the engine.
We'd been driving for maybe ten minutes when the pressure on my bladder became unbearable.
"I need you to stop," I said. "Bathroom."
"Not falling for that, Mrs. Morrison."
"I'm eight months pregnant. I actually need to pee."
His assessing eyes met mine in the mirror. "Only if you give me consent to follow you into the bathroom. Or you can pee right there on Mr. Lancaster's leather seats. Your choice."
"You can't be serious."
"I'd be stupid to trust you, Mrs. Morrison. You run, I lose my job. Maybe worse. So either I watch you pee, or you hold it until I get you home."
My hands clenched in my lap. I needed him to stop the car.
"Fine," I whispered, reaching under my dress to slip off the cotton shorts I wore underneath. I balled them in my fist. "Just... stop at the next gas station."
He grunted, pulling off the highway five minutes later. The filing station was small, mostly empty. He killed the engine and turned in his seat. "Don't try anything stupid."
"I won't."
The moment he turned back around to open his door, I pressed the balled shorts over his nose and mouth from behind, my other hand bracing against the headrest for leverage.
He thrashed immediately, hands flying up to grab my wrists, but I held firm, leaning my weight forward despite my pregnant belly. His movements grew frantic, then weakened. His hands fell away from my wrists.
I counted ten more seconds, then released him. His head slumped forward. I checked quickly, and he was still breathing. Taking his phone from the center console, I pushed open the door, and ran.
It was humiliating how the pee gushed out my bladder as I ran, but I didn't stop.
Back at Adrian’s, I cleaned myself up and slumped onto the couch.
“Grandfather was part of the plan. Derek is blackmailing him.”
Adrian glanced at me. "Then we do this alone."
"I can't fight them all. They're too powerful."
"You're not alone anymore. I'm with you, and we're about to have help. Two little ones who'll give us all the evidence we need."
That night, I went into labor.
Chapter 10
Lily and Lucas
ADRIAN
The contractions started at 2 AM.
I woke to Vivian's gasp of pain, her hand clutching her belly.
"Adrian. Something's happening."
I'd been sleeping on the couch, giving her my bed. In just three days, we'd fallen into an unexpected partnership; helping her escape. Over a week later, here I was, planning her revenge, preparing for the babies, building trust.
I also hadn't told her the truth about why I helped her.
"How far apart are the contractions?" I asked, moving to check her.
"I don't know… I don't know…" Another wave of pain crossed her face. "Oh God. Is it really happening?"
"Babies come when they want to come. Yours seem to want to come now."
I'd prepared for this. Sterilized equipment in my bathroom. Clean towels. Emergency medical supplies. I was an OB/GYN, but I'd never planned to deliver babies in my apartment.
"We need to go to the hospital," Vivian said through gritted teeth.
"We can't. Derek has people watching every hospital in the city. The moment you're admitted, they'll find you."
"Then what do we do?" She panted.
"I deliver them here. I've done this a thousand times. You're in good hands."
Vivian looked terrified. "What if something goes wrong?"
"Nothing will go wrong. I promise."
That was a lie. Home births were risky, especially with twins. Especially when the mother had been under severe stress for months. But we had no choice.
Over the next five hours, I coached Vivian through labor. She was incredibly strong and determined, suppressing her screams even when I knew the pain was overwhelming.
"You can scream," I told her. "No one will judge you."
"If I start screaming, I won't stop," she cried. "I'll scream about everything. About Derek. About Claire. About my grandfather. About how everyone I trusted destroyed me."
"Then scream about that. Let it out."
She did. At hour six, she was crying and begging for it to be over.
The first came out at 8:47 a.m.
Her son, screaming and perfect and alive.
At 9:03 a.m., her daughter followed.
Quieter than her brother, but just as perfect.
She called them Lily and Lucas as I placed them on her chest.
“These babies…” she said between sobs, “genetically Claire and Derek's, but mine in every way that mattered. I'd carried them. I'd protected them. I'd fought for them. They are mine.”
I let her have her moment before reminding her about the DNA test to prove the egg fraud. I took cheek swabs from both twins, from Vivian, and kept them with samples I had obtained from Derek and Claire when they threatened me in my office for Vivian's escape.
"Results will take forty-eight hours, but Vivian... what if they're really not genetically yours?"
"They're mine regardless." She looked at her sleeping babies.
Three days later, I handed her the envelope with shaky hands. Her face went pale when she opened it.
"What?" I demanded. "What does it say?"
"Lucas is Derek and Claire's genetic child. But Lily..." She looked up at me, eyes wide. "Lily is genetically mine. Mine and Derek's."
“What? Okay, there must be a mistake somewhere.”
But she didn't seem to care. She was laughing, crying, then both at once.
She cried about it being heaven's way of going easy on her, and now, she was more than determined to finish everything up as fast as possible.
"I'm going to make them confess. And then I'm going to take everything they tried to steal from me."
Over the next two weeks, she involved me in all her plans. I helped her set up the trap, praying she doesn’t notice my nervousness and occasional distraction.
"What's wrong?" She asked one night when I'd choked on the amount of money she said she'd set up in trust for Lucas and Lily.
"Nothing. Just worried about you. About what happens next." I tried hiding the fear in my eyes, but I could tell just from her face that she saw it.
‘I am sorry, Vivian.’
Chapter 11
You Are A Weak Man
DEREK
Vivian had been missing for over six weeks.
Six weeks of police searches, growing panic, and manipulating the media with claims that Vivian was mentally ill. Claire was barely speaking to me, blaming me for the entire disaster, and my mother wouldn't stop calling.
"Find her," Patricia demanded. "Find her before she ruins everything."
"I'm trying. She's vanished."
"She was pregnant with twins. She can't just vanish into thin air."
But Vivian had disappeared completely like she'd become a ghost. No credit card usage, no email log-ins, no sightings.
Until I received an anonymous text:
"Suite 412, Grand Hotel. 8 PM. Come alone if you want to see your children. Let's negotiate."
It felt like a trap, but I went anyway, without informing Claire nor Patricia.
Vivian isn't smart. Who does she have on her side? What resources does she have?
At 8 PM, I knocked at the door, and Claire answered for me.
“What the hell are you doing here?! You followed me?” I yelled at her.
“You are Mr. Ghost? What the fuck bro?!”
“What do you mean by ghost??”
Apparently, Claire had been “bonding” with this “hot” stranger she met on a dating app and they were meeting in this hotel, this room, tonight.
“So I've been losing my mind about finding our twins and making sure Vivian doesn't ruin our happy ending… and you've been hooking up with random men? I am working hard for our future, and you want to fuck some cheap loser? Give me a damn answer, Claire! Give me a reason to not deal with you right here!” The words kept pouring out, all the stress of past months erupting.
She pushed me away and sat on the edge of the bed, tucking strands of her blonde hair behind her ear.
“And so? You don't think the situation is taking a toll on me as well?” Her voice carried no regret nor shame. “It's been six damn weeks and you've still not found her. You are as incapable as your stupid mother-”
“Don't you dare insult my mother,” I snapped. “This is all your fault first. You caused all these. You always wanted to use Vivian's things, wear her clothes, and make us have sex in our bedroom that day just to mock her.
Five years I've been protecting our affair and we got caught on the very day you made us fuck in our house, so don't you DARE call me incapable.”
"My fault?" Claire's voice rose. "You're the one who came up with this plan! You're the one who wanted to switch her eggs!"
"Because YOU didn't want to ruin your body! Mom and I did it for you!"
We were screaming now, all the tension and fear and anger of six weeks pouring out.
"You said it would be easy!" Claire shouted. "You said she was too stupid to figure it out!"
"She was stupid! She trusted us! We had everything planned perfectly until you forced me into having sex with you in my matrimonial home!"
She laughed in my face now.
“Such a weak man. You can't even take responsibility for your own actions.”
“Don't ever call me weak.”
“Yes, you are weak. Did I force you to get hard that day? Did I point a gun to your head? You are weak, Derek. You are weak! Weak! Weak!” She began chanting in my face.
“Stop it Claire.” I pushed her away, but she came back and resumed her chanting. I clenched my fists.
Then I lost it. I slapped her hard and she fell to the floor.
“Look who's weak now,” it was so satisfying, watching her hold her cheek like a helpless little animal. “Get on your feet and call me weak again.”
She did, except she punched me straight in the gut instead of yelling ‘weak’. I recoiled, clutching my hurting stomach, and then she punched my cheek.
For someone with such soft hands that turns me on with just a few touches, it was surprising the kind of shockwave that traveled from her knuckles, across my cheekbone, and straight to my molars.
The impact made a sharp crack that echoed inside my skull, and I bit down hard on the inside of my mouth. I tasted the immediate tang of blood, my vision swimming momentarily.
Then the door burst open.
Police officers flooded in. Behind them, Vivian stood holding two infants against her chest, her face cold. She looked at me with eyes that held no love, no softness, eyes I couldn't recognize.
"Vivian—" I started.
"Derek Morrison, you're under arrest for fraud, conspiracy, and reproductive coercion," one officer said, pulling my arms behind my back. "Claire Chen, you're under arrest for the same charges.
Chapter 12
Slaps Everywhere
VIVIAN
"This is bullshit!" Claire screamed.
"This is justice," I told her with a smirk. "You tried to steal my children. My company. My life. Now you lose everything."
Watching Derek and Claire led away in handcuffs was the sweetest moment of my life. Better than my wedding day, than becoming CEO, than anything I'd ever experienced. Because I did this. I orchestrated their downfall from nothing.
The police had been skeptical when I first approached them with my story and only DNA results as evidence.
A cheating mother claiming her husband had switched embryos? It sounded insane.
Until I tricked them with a fake alert to the hotel and made them watch the livestream of what was happening in Derek's room while hiding in the room opposite.
One of the men criticized me, calling it illegal, but I didn't care. They decided to burst in once they started hitting each other.
In less than an hour, the news of the interim CEO of Lancaster industries was everywhere. Questions were arising, all centering around ‘What Is Going On In The Lancaster Family?’
Claire confessed to her crimes, and Patricia was arrested while having a pool party with her friends.
Derek refused to confess.
“Claire is just making accusations because she is jealous of my love for Vivian. Claire manipulated me all along,” his eyes locked on me. “Think about our twins, Vivian. Do you really want them to grow up fatherless-” I slapped him before he could finish.
“How dare you try to manipulate me with innocent babies?! You disgust me, Derek,” I spat on him and he jumped upright to grab me, but an officer stopped him before he could.
A throat cleared behind us.
We all turned to see my grandfather and Nathan standing behind him, head bent.
As grandfather advanced further into the room, I saw Derek's face suddenly relax from the corner of my eyes.
God, if Harold was here to help Derek, I would—
He wiped Derek's head with his cane. Derek fell to the floor, holding his head.
“I want this bastard to get the maximum possible punishment. I will hire all the top lawyers in America for the court case. You will curse the day you stepped into the Lancaster family.”
My mouth fell open. I couldn't believe my ears. After all this while… after all the suffering…
Harold turned to me, and before he could say anything, I rushed into his arms.
“Grandpa, I hate you so much,” I sobbed into his fragile frame. His hands moved to my hair and patted it down. “What took you so long? Why now? I'm never gonna forgive you, I swear.”
“That's right, my daughter. You don't have to forgive me. I don't deserve it,” he kissed my hair.
“You old devil!” Derek snarled. “You must get me out of here or I will—”
“Or you will what? I came to turn myself in for embezzlement.”
“What?” Our three voices exclaimed at the same time. Mine, Derek's and Nathan's. I pulled back from Harold.
“You were right about me being blackmailed by Derek. I embezzled fifty million dollars five years ago, and I don't know how he found out, but he's been holding it against me for the past five months.”
It all made sense now, but why would grandfather need to embezzle such an amount of money. I asked, and his reply, “story for another day, Vivian.”
All three of them were kept in custody. Harold wasn't.
I rode in the backseat of his car with him, Nathan at the front, on to the small apartment that had welcomed me weeks ago. After the arrest, I had left my twins in Adrian’s care because I didn't want them anywhere near the police station drama.
Nathan had still not spoken to me. I was waiting for him to “apologize” so I could give him a resounding slap.
When we got out of the car, he dragged me aside.
“Vivian,” he started, looking devastated. "I didn't know about the eggs, Claire, any of it. I'm so sorry."
Now I slapped his disgusting face.
“Even if you did, does that justify lying against me?”
“I swear, I thought grandfather wanted it just so Derek would leave you. I didn't know it was to kick you out as CEO—” I slapped him again.
“Even if it was gonna make me the fucking president of this country, again I ask, does that justify YOUR actions?!!”
Chapter 13
It Is Ms. Lancaster
He rubbed his forehead with his tattooed hand, then went down on his knees.
“Don't bother. I'm never forgiving you. My kids will grow up and see online, what you made of their mother while they were in my belly. I hate you, Nathan. I HATE YOU!!”
Now I was crying again and Harold had to hold me together.
I cried all the way upstairs. I didn't even introduce Adrian to Harold, just went into his room and cried myself to sleep.
***
An emergency custody hearing was scheduled for the next two mornings. I had a full team of lawyers representing me, presenting the DNA evidence, the recorded confessions, the proof of reproductive coercion.
Derek's lawyer tried to argue that Claire had genetic rights to Lucas.
The judge shut him down immediately.
"Ms. Morrison never consented to donor eggs. This entire situation was predicated on fraud. Full custody is awarded to Vivian Morrison."
Derek had stood in the courtroom, shackled, watching me hold both twins. "Vivian, they're still my children—"
"They're my children only. You lost the right to call them yours when you tried to steal them from me."
Derek was facing up to twelve years for fraud, blackmail, and conspiracy, Claire seven, and Patricia five.
Outside the courtroom, reporters swarmed.
"Mrs. Morrison, how does it feel to have justice?”
"It is Ms. Lancaster, and it feels like I can finally breathe."
"What about Lancaster Industries?"
"The board has asked me to resume my position as CEO, pending investigation clearance." I smiled. "But I'm taking a year's break to rediscover myself with my two kids by my side."
“And your stepbrother? What do you have to say about his confession?”
“Confession?” I repeated. I learned right there outside the courtroom that Nathan had done a press conference, confessing how he was part of my drugging, and was paid to lie about our affair.
“Wow!” I exhaled, then turned to the cameras again. “I'll say the same thing I told him two nights ago; I hate you, Nathan Lancaster, and I will never forgive you.”
Then the guards cleared a path for me, and I left with my head held up high.
***
Six weeks after the arrests, while I moved into a new penthouse apartment with the twins, news reached me that Derek escaped from prison.
I didn't panic. I was somewhere he'd never find me, somewhere without memories of betrayal.
Adrian helped me move, and after a week of settling in, I invited him over for dinner… but he turned it down.
“He's busy with shifts. I did put him through a lot of extra stress over the past months,” I told myself.
That evening, I was alone with Lucas and Lily, two months old now, sleeping peacefully in their cribs. I stood watching them, marveling at how perfect they were.
The doorbell rang.
I checked the security camera, and it was Derek.
My heart stopped.
“How did he find us?”
"Vivian." His voice through the intercom was rough and desperate. "Please. I know you're there. I just want to see my children for five minutes then I'll leave forever."
I should call the police immediately. Instead, I opened the door.
Chapter 14
Red Roses
Derek looked terrible. Gaunt, unshaven, wearing clothes that hung loose on his frame. Prison was clearly destroying him already.
"Thank you," he whispered.
I let him inside, my hand on my phone, ready to call 911 if needed.
Derek walked to the cribs, staring at the sleeping twins with an expression I'd never seen before. Genuine grief.
"They're beautiful," he said softly.
"They are."
"Lily has your nose."
"She does."
He turned to face me.
"Vivian, I know I don't deserve forgiveness. I know what I did was unforgivable. But I need you to know, I did love you. Once. In the beginning, before the plan consumed everything. You were the best thing that ever happened to me, and I destroyed it."
"You destroyed us. Your greed destroyed us."
"I know." Tears streaked down his face. "I know. And I'll pay for it for the rest of my life. But please... please let me hold them. Just once before I go to prison."
Every instinct screamed that this was manipulation, that Derek Morrison didn't do genuine emotion.
But I was exhausted from rage. Exhausted from fighting. And maybe, buried deep under all the hatred, there was still a fragment of the woman who'd loved him.
"Five minutes," I managed to say. “Don't make me regret this by trying anything funny.”
I let him hold Lucas first, then Lily. He cried while holding them, whispering apologies they couldn't understand.
"I need one last thing from you Vivian," he suddenly dropped to his knees after placing Lily securely into her cot. "Please help me leave the country. If I go to trial, I'll get fifteen years. But if you help me get to Mexico, I can disappear and start over. You'd never see me again, I promise. You'd be free."
"Derek, how dare you make such a request—"
"Please. I'm begging you. Do it for your children's father. Help me leave, and in exchange, I'll sign away all parental rights. I'll give you everything. Just please, help me escape this."
He was asking me to commit a crime. To help a fugitive.
"If I help you, you tell me everything. Every secret, every lie, every piece of leverage you have. Everything I don't know yet."
"I'll tell you everything."
We sat on the couch, and Derek confessed. About finding evidence of my grandfather's embezzlement in old company files. About approaching him with blackmail. About convincing Harold that I was unstable, that I'd destroy the company if left in charge.
"The stepbrother scandal was Harold's idea, not mine," Derek said. "He paid Nathan twenty thousand to get drugged and photographed with you. He wanted a reason to fire you that wouldn't look like his choice."
I faked as much shock as I could, "My own grandfather set me up?"
"He thought it was the only way to save his legacy." Derek shook his head. “He's a coward, Vivian. He loves you, but he's too weak to protect you."
Then Derek told me more, every ugly detail I already knew.
When he finished, I stood. "Okay. I'll help you."
"Really?" His eyes lit up.
"Just because I don't want my kid's father to be in prison. I'll give you the money to pay for your trip and a secret contact. You can sail to Mexico from the harbor.”
Hope flooded Derek's face. "Thank you. God, Vivian, thank you." He pulled me into a hug.
I hugged him back, and he held on tighter, desperate and grateful.
"One more thing,” I pulled back and smiled. “I lied. Come out boys.”
Then police flooded in from my kitchen, the stairs, everywhere, a total of eight men.
Derek's face went from hope to horror.
"You—you set me up—"
"You taught me well." I stepped back as they handcuffed him. "I heard you escaped from prison, and I knew you'd come back to me with your manipulative tactics.
Thanks by the way for finally admitting to all your crimes. I have that on record now. And for trying to escape the country? That's another charge."
"Vivian!”
They dragged him away screaming. I watched calmly, feeling nothing in my heart.
After everyone left, I stood alone in my penthouse with my sleeping twins. Everything was finally in place, and I should feel victorious, Instead, I felt empty.
Revenge wasn't as satisfying as I'd hoped.
Three days passed, and I couldn't get rid of the emptiness in my heart, until I got a text from Adrian.
“Can we still have dinner?”
“Sure! Tonight.” I have never replied to a text as fast as I replied to him.
When I opened the door for him, he was holding a bouquet of beautiful red roses. My heart lit up, racing in the sweetest way it hadn't in months. I closed my eyes, letting the deeply floral scent fill my insides.
“Vivian,” Adrian called me softly.
I opened my eyes and looked up, and he had a gun pointing to me.
Chapter 15
A Million Dollar
I couldn't believe my eyes. Was this a prank? A water gun?
“Adrian… what… that… what is…” I didn't even know what to ask.
"Inside." His voice was flat, not the gentle tone I'd come to know. "Now."
I stepped back, my arms instinctively wrapping around my body. The twins were sleeping in the nursery down the hall. Elizabeth, their nanny, was in the kitchen preparing bottles for the night feeding.
"Adrian, please. Whatever this is-"
"A million dollars." He closed the door behind him, the gun still trained on me. "Transfer it to this account. Now."
He thrust his phone at me with his free hand, showing a banking app with account details already entered.
"I don't understand-"
"I have gambling debts. Five hundred thousand dollars. People who will kill me if I don't pay. I need double that to disappear and start over." His hand shook slightly, making the gun waver. "You told me everything about Lancaster Industries. Every weakness, every secret, every vulnerability. If you don't pay me, I sell it all to your competitors. I'll destroy your company."
The roses fell from my other hand, petals scattering across the hardwood floor.
"You're blackmailing me?"
"I'm surviving." His eyes were desperate, wild. "You have the money, Vivian. It's the least you could do to thank me for saving your life."
"I trusted you. You delivered my babies-"
"And I'm sorry. But I'm out of options. I've been out of options for a long time now, until the day the rich heiress was rushed into my hospital after faking her injuries.
Transfer the money, or I'll testify that you knew about your grandfather's embezzlement. That you were part of it. I'll destroy you."
My phone was on the entry table. I reached for it slowly, watching the gun track my movement.
"Don't try anything stupid," he warned.
"I'm just getting my phone." My voice was just as unsteady as my insides. "To make the transfer."
I opened my banking app, entered my password, and navigated to the transfer screen.
One million dollars.
I could trigger the silent alarm on my security system, but the gun was pointed at my chest, and my babies were upstairs.
"Account number?" I asked quietly.
He read it out, watching me type each digit.
"Routing number?"
He gave it to me.
I looked at the screen. One million dollars, one click, and it was gone.
"Transfer initiated," the screen read.
Adrian checked his phone, verifying. His shoulders sagged with relief. "Thank you, Vivian, thank you. You have no idea how much this means to me."
"Get out."
"I know you're angry, but you have to understand why I did what I did. You are a rich heiress-"
"GET OUT!" I screamed. "Get out before I change my mind and call the police!"
He backed toward the door, the gun lowering.
"I'm sorry. I really am. You're a good person, but I didn't have a choice, and this nothing compared to all the millions you have in your account."
"Everyone has a choice. You just made yours."
He left, closing the door softly behind him.
I stood in the entry, staring at the scattered rose petals, and felt something inside me shatter.
The tears came violently. I sank to the floor, my back against the wall, and sobbed.
Derek had betrayed me. Claire had betrayed me. Patricia had betrayed me. My grandfather had betrayed me. Nathan had betrayed me.
And now Adrian—the one person I thought had helped me without ulterior motives—had held a gun to my chest and stolen a million dollars.
"Ms. Vivian?" came Elizabeth's concerned voice. The older woman appeared in the hallway, wiping her hands on a dishtowel. "I heard shouting. Are you… oh, honey."
She knelt beside me, her arms wrapping around my shoulders. I collapsed against her. She’d only been my nanny for two months, but I cried like a child in her arms.
"Everyone," I gasped between sobs. "Everyone has hurt me. Used me."
"Shh, I know. I know, dear."
"What if you do too?" I pulled back, looking at her through my tears. "What if even you betray me? Hurt my babies? Everyone else has. Why would you be different?"
Elizabeth's weathered face creased with sympathy.
"Oh, sweetheart. I can't promise I'll never make a mistake. I'm human. But I can promise I'll never deliberately hurt you or those babies. Never."
"How do I know that?"
"You don't. Not for certain. That's what trust is. A leap of faith." She stood, helping me to my feet. "But right now, you need to get into bed. You're exhausted, and those babies will be up in three hours wanting their mama."
She guided me to my bedroom, pulled back the covers, helped me lie down like I was one of the twins.
"I'll bring you some tea," she stroked my hair. "And then I'll sit right outside your door until you fall asleep. Nobody's getting to you or those babies. Not on my watch."
"Elizabeth?"
"Yes, dear?"
"Thank you. For just... being here."
"That's what I'm here for." She smoothed my hair back from my forehead. "Sleep now. Tomorrow you can figure out what to do about whoever made you cry."
After she left, I stared at the ceiling, feeling the weight of every betrayal pressing down on my chest once more.
I'd trusted wrong again, but tomorrow I'd make him pay too, just like the others.
Because I am Vivian Lancaster.
And I am done being a victim.
Chapter 16
Angry And Victorious
Derek's trial lasted three weeks.
I attended every day, the twins with Elizabeth in the back of the courtroom. I wanted Derek to see them. To know what he'd lost.
The prosecution presented our case methodically. The recorded confessions, DNA evidence, falsified IVF forms, the plan to have me locked up in a mental institution.
Derek's lawyer tried every defense, even claimed Derek had genuinely loved me and had been manipulated by Claire and Patricia.
None of it worked. The jury deliberated for four hours and Derek was found guilty on all counts.
The judge sentenced him to thirteen years, with parole eligibility after eight.
"Mr. Morrison," the judge said, "you perpetrated one of the most egregious violations of bodily autonomy I've seen in my career. You treated your wife as an incubator, stole her genetic material, and planned to steal her children. The sentence reflects the severity of these crimes."
Derek turned to look at me as they led him away. "I did love you in the beginning!” he shouted. "I did! That wasn't a lie."
"That just makes it worse," I replied.
Claire's trial was next. Eight years for conspiracy and fraud. She screamed in the courtroom that Lucas was her son, that she had rights, that I'd stolen her baby.
The judge was unmoved.
"You orchestrated reproductive coercion against Ms. Morrison. You have no parental rights to any child involved in this case."
Patricia got the same. She didn't look at me during sentencing, just stared straight ahead.
Adrian's trial was last. The evidence I submitted?
A recording of our conversation. Thanks to Derek, I have hidden cameras and recorders everywhere in my house. He got five years for armed robbery, extortion, and his medical license was suspended.
"Your Honor, I was desperate. I made terrible choices. But I helped Ms. Morrison escape, I delivered her children safely-" He tried to apologize.
"You also violated every ethical standard of your profession," the judge wasn't hearing it.
As they led him away, Adrian looked at me. I looked away.
After all the trials concluded, I stood outside the courthouse with my head lawyer, a woman named Margaret who'd been fierce and brilliant.
"It's over," she said. "You won."
"I know."
"So why don't you look happy?"
Because winning felt hollow. Because I'd lost everything and everyone. Because the twins would grow up knowing their father was in prison, their biological mother was in prison, and everyone who should have loved them had tried to destroy them instead.
"I'm happy, I swear," I lied.
Margaret squeezed my shoulder. "You're allowed to be angry and victorious at the same time, you know. You can grieve while celebrating. You're human, Vivian."
But I felt more like a machine designed for revenge and less of a human.
And now that revenge was complete, It was hard figuring out what to do next.
*
One year after Derek's arrest, I was back in Lancaster Industries, and it was thriving.
I'd restructured the entire company, brought in new leadership, launched three successful product lines. The stock price had tripled. Industry magazines called me a visionary.
I was the most talked about female CEO. Powerful, respected, and maybe feared a little.
And I was happy. Genuinely happy this time.
The twins were my entire world. Lucas and Lily, fifteen months old, walking and babbling and perfect. Lucas had Derek's stubborness, and my beauty was in Lily's features.
But mostly, they were just themselves. Children who knew nothing of the conspiracy that had created them. Children who called me "Mama" and loved unconditionally.
Elizabeth was family now. The steady, maternal presence I'd needed when I was rebuilding my life from ashes.
My days were typically filled with board meetings, product launches, networking events where I met fascinating people who saw me as Vivian Lancaster the CEO, not Vivian Morrison the scandal.
I was making new friends, building new connections, creating a life beyond revenge.
But sometimes, late at night after the twins were asleep, I'd stand at my office window and feel it—a hollowness.
Not loneliness exactly. Just an awareness that I'd won everything and lost everyone in the process.
My grandfather died six months ago of a heart attack during house arrest. He'd tried to reconcile before the end, sending letter after letter.
I'd read only one.
“Viv, I know I failed you. I chose my pride over your safety. I can't ask for forgiveness because I don't deserve it. But I want you to know: you were the best thing I ever created. Not the company, not the legacy. You. And I'm sorry I didn't protect you the way a grandfather should. You deserved better. You deserved everything. -Harold”
I cried reading it. Then I'd put it away and never looked at it again.
He'd left me everything in his will. Full ownership of Lancaster Industries, his estate, his fortune.
I was one of the wealthiest women in America now. The wealth meant less than I'd expected.
But freedom? The power to protect my children, to build something meaningful? That mattered more than anything.
Derek sent letters every week from prison. I never opened them, only added them to the box in my closet. Maybe someday I'd read them. Maybe not.
Claire's parents had tried to visit once, claiming they wanted to meet their "grandson" Lucas but I had security remove them.
Patricia died of cancer in prison. No one came to her funeral.
Adrian was still alive, last I heard. Survived his prison beating but remained in constant danger from his creditors. I felt nothing about that.
Nathan's card sat on my desk, unopened from the twins' first birthday. I looked at it sometimes but couldn't bring myself to respond yet.
I had everything I'd fought for and the past must remain in the past.
***
FIVE YEARS LATER
"Mama, tell us a story!" Lily demanded, curled up in her bed with her stuffed rabbit.
"The dragon story!" Lucas added from his bed across the room. "With the brave knight!"
I settled into the chair between their beds, these six-year-old miracles who'd survived everything.
"Once upon a time," I began, "there was a dragon who everyone thought was a princess. She was kind and good and trusting. But people took advantage of her kindness. They tried to trap her, use her, steal everything she loved."
"That's sad," Lily said.
"It was. But then the dragon woke up. She breathed fire and burned down all the cages. She fought all the bad people. And she won."
"And then she lived happily ever after?" Lucas asked.
"She lived freely ever after, which is better."
"What's the difference?"
"I'd sayhappy is what other people give you. Free is what you give yourself."
They didn't fully understand. They were six, but someday they would.
Someday I'd tell them about their father in prison and the conspiracy that created them. But tonight, they were just children who needed bedtime stories.
After they fell asleep, I went to my home office. Nathan's photo sat on my desk—we had dinner twice a month now. After years of sending me texts once every week, I finally let him see the twins.
He was slowly part of our lives again. Uncle Nathan, who brought the twins ridiculous presents and made them laugh.
Elizabeth's photo was there too. The woman who'd become family and had been there through the hardest year of my life and never wavered.
Derek's most recent letter sat unopened. They came less frequently now. I still didn't read them, but I kept them for the twins someday.
Tomorrow, I had a board meeting. Next week, a product launch. Next month, an expansion into three new markets.
Lancaster Industries was the most successful company in its sector, and I'd expanded it from the ashes of betrayal.
I was happy most days, and learning to be okay with the occasional hollowness that came with rebuilding a life.
My phone buzzed. A text from a business contact I'd met at last month's conference:
“Coffee next week? Would love to discuss the collaboration we talked about.”
I smiled and typed back: “Sounds great.”
New connections and new possibilities. A future I was building on my own terms.
I'd been caught cheating on my husband, except I never cheated.
They tried to break me.
Instead, they made me, and I was magnificent.
Not because I'd destroyed my enemies—though I had.
Not because I'd reclaimed my empire—though I had.
But because I'd learned to be both ruthless and soft. Both powerful and vulnerable. Both alone and connected.
“I am Vivian Lancaster. CEO, Mother, Survivor, Builder and it's just the beginning.”
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